“I’ve heard the whipers about you and your days as a soldier. Knowing which war you served in I believe you must have felt that feeling of darkness looming around you.. Akello’s eyes widened with recognition and with regret. He saw a hint of himself in Aardal. Akello was also just a person who was labeled as crazy. Remebering the stories told about Akello, they all paint him to be crazy, just like he is painted. Although Akello is aleinated already, he’s not yet as alienated as Aardal. Akello regretted believing all that was said about Aardal through fairy and folk tales, not recognizing until meeting him, that he was very simmilar to him.
“You can feel it here as well, can’t you?” Aardal asked about the darkness that Akello felt, which led him here. Akello, being so utterly ashamed of treating Aardal the same way he has been treated, kept silent, simply answering to that questions with a confirmatory nod. When he said “I’m not the man you’re looking for … But somebody is and I’ve got to find him.” Akello, although he was wrong in this assumption, thought Aardal had the same motive for finding this man as he did. Knowing the reason behind this want was in it’s core good, Akello has decided to trust this man, for he has no reason to doubt him yet.
While Akello was confused and trying to think clearly and get his thoughts in order, he could still notice the things going on around him. He saw somebody reach for Aardal’s items on the floor. He also noticed Aardal didn’t react to it and explained what they did. “Those I use to find the source of the dark magic. I’m getting closer every day. I assume you’re looking for the same? If you are maybe we can work together and weed out the darkness that grows here.”
“Aardal!” the black haired soldier tried to get his attention. Aardal and Siltral are about to start a discussion, which Akello intently listened to.
“you want to find ‘somebody’ and I understand the darkness that looms.” Does he really understand? Akello doubted that. He didn’t have the same feeling of understanding from Siltral as he did from Aardal. It felt as if Aardal knew more about what he felt.
“But you’re doing it from a particularly heavily tarnished pedestal. Those people you harmed?” If he hadn’t felt alienated from the world and more connected to Aardal already, he felt it after that saying. He felt sayings about himself around the area weren’t true, and he wondered if this man was so quick to accept a fairytale told as true, would he also believe any lie told to him about Akello?
The man kept on talking as if what he was told in a story was true and it annoyed Akello and he could see it also annoyed Aardal.
Akello, who at first wanted this man captured was now feeling a sense of injustice and a bad gut feeling when both the soldiers said they wanted him arrested. “Let’s skip the theatrics, shall we? You’re under arrest, you’re being charged. Save the pleading for court.” He felt like he should shout ‘NOO!’ and done something to protect him, but he also felt something like this was too much.
“We have the suspect. Let’s go. There is no need to waste more time here.” Akello turned to Aardal to see what he would do now. Aardal had gotten his point across nicely, withouth resorting to violence, and has shown Siltral the ridiculousness of his accusations. Akello watched Siltral’s face as Aardal spoke to see how his words resonate with him, still trying to process things. “I’d love to go back with you to see Dux and prove my innocence in this …” Akello stopped listening to Aardal’s words at this rate because something in this sentence caused a slight reaction in Siltral. Was the name important? Is Dux a place or a person? And why does it matter so?
Siltral kept on talking about how they will take him to court, not entertaining any notion Aardal said before. He then mentioned. “The only thing that will save you is solid evidence, not stubborness.” And Akello had half a mind to say ‘Look who’s talking, you decided he was guilty of countless crimes withouth having any more evidence than a town gossip.’ But he didn’t bring himself to say it, knowing they would both turn on him. Having light magic and being soldiers, he knew that Aardal who maybe had dark magic and himself who knew no magic at all, wouldn’t be able to fight against them.
Akello waited for Aardal to say something to prove his innocence, and he turned to watch his response. Instead of dignifying Siltral with an answer, he rolled his eyes and turned to Akello, which surprised Akello. He took his runes and placed it in Akello’s hands. When it dropped on his hands Akello didn’t expect them to be so hot. It wasn’t hot enough to melt anything or to harm his hand, but they were warm, and yet too warm to come from the heat of his hands. He then explained the warmth of the runes was connected to the darkness. Akello looked at the warm runes in his hand and poked them with his finger. “What, they get warmer the closer we get to the darkness? How close are we considering they’re so warm?” Akello didn’t want to look at the reaction of the soldiers because he knew they would be condenscending and rude to Aardal even with this evidence. He turned around to see them gone. Aardal followed his gaze and when he aw the scene rolled his eyes again. "Are they …? He looked at Aardal. He didn’t want to finish that thought because it seemed stupid that they should hide in the grass as if that would save them from any real danger. He also thought they were overrecting and too gullible. He regretted bringing them out here and wished he went in alone, as he often did. He was glad to have found somebody who could understand him even if that person is Aardal.
@Ouijaloveletters - Fable (it’s your turn now)
@eunoia - Siltral (I have no clue what just happened?)
@Meekepeek - Can Aardal prove some way that he’s innocent? Otherwise Aardal will freeze Siltral and Fable and move on withouth them saying “The darkness that looms will set you free in about an hour or so due to the heat it’s producing.”